The ESCURA
INSTANT 60s is a simple, but stylish Instant camera for Fuji Instax
Mini film. It was a Kickstarter project. Launched end October 2018 it
was financed in only 4 days and should have been delivered in Spring
2019. During the campaign they added an extra finder for free and
proposed add-ons as a matching flash. Until mid January 2018 all seemed fine.
Production test end February showed that all was fine...except the
lens. Sharpness wasn't too good and it had heavy vignetting, so they
had to look for a solution which meant a delay. By the month of May update some
backers were disappointed, but the makers continued and proposed a
2-element lens instead of the initial single lens with no extra costs,
however it would be a major delay. During Summer an additional rollers
problem surfaced, but they still continued. By September the first
final camera was assembled, the rollers were re-worked another time.
Finally in November shipment started, because of the Hong Kong
protests with some more delay. Early december my camera was shipped.
French customs kept it for nearly a month. It was delivered early
January 2020. Most of the backers were very supportive, the
perseverance of the makers and their information policy were adorable.
I have known Kickstarter projects that were abandoned, but these people
kept their promise.
But in the end I got a faulty camera. They had promised customer
service. At first there were some lame excuses and
weeks of waiting. Finally they got it going and I was promised a
replacement camera. After some more waiting my replacement camera
arrived early March. I will have to wait for sunny weather to test it.
Let's have a look at the camera.
Technical Specifications:
Film Format: Fujifilm Instax Mini Film Exposure Area: 62mm x 46mm Lens Focal Length: 60mm Aperture: f/12.7 or f/16 Shutter Speed: Bulb Mode, 1/100s Film Ejection Mechanism: Hand powered Multiple Exposures: Unlimited External Flash: 4 (m) Tripod Mount: Yes Film Counter: mechanical indication, counting down Size: 12 x 16 x 10 cm including finder Weight: 285 gr.
Accessories: Flash, colour
filters for flash.
Some pictures of the camera:
The
pledge from Kickstarter in nice stylish boxes, the camera, the flash and color filters for the flash.
Obviously they changed the design of the boxes, once the Kickstarter
pledges were delivered. This is the box of my replacement camera.
New box seen from the other side.
What's in the box. The camera, the flash and instructions.
Camera
with cap and extra finder. Initially there was no finder planned. The
finder is not even a frame, it's only an aiming help.
The camera front.
Left side with shutter lever on the lens barrel. Ejection wind knob.
Back side with frame counter.
Right side, sunny/cloudy setting on the lens barrel.
Back open.
When the cartridge is installed, the counter moves with every ejection.
The counter didn't work properly on mine, it moved to 9 and then back
to 10. It works on my replacement camera. The back flap has uneven gaps, this causes light leaks in the
sun on mine.
The flash, instructions and cable.
Takes 2 simple AA batteries.
Flash control panel.
Camera
and flash connected. Both have tripod mounts and can be fixed to a
rail. On the lens barrel: shutter setting 1/100s or bulb.
The colour filters for the flash are heavily protected.
Protections peeled off. The neodyne magnets keep them fixed if you put them on the screws of the flash reflector.
Just to give you an idea, some photos, taken with this camera:
First shots on a dull day.
The results are better than expected. I have scanned some of the photos below.
Lower row from left: 1. ~2m, flash, cloudy setting. 2.+ 3. outside in dull weather, cloudy setting.
Upper row from left: 1. ~1.2m, outside in the shade, cloudy setting. 2. ~2m, flash, sunny setting. 3. ~1.5m, flash, sunny setting.
Some scans:
Outside in dull weather, cloudy setting. Not exactly sharp, but o.k.
Outside in dull weather, cloudy setting. Same as above.
~2m, flash, sunny setting.
1.5m, flash, sunny setting with shaded flash by the white opaque filter.
So far the pictures are fine for a cheap camera. But when I took the
camera out into the sun the next day, there were heavy light leaks.
Outside in the sun, sunny setting, heavy light leaks.
Outside in the sun, sunny setting, heavy light leaks.
If you tape the back flap, you get rid of the leaks. But this is a bit of work every time and ruins the design.
The
Escura Instant 60s is a Lomo style lightweight camera, easy to handle.
It has a stylish design, build quality seems very good, the plastic seems
to be solid. The flash styling matches the camera.
The finder
is only an aiming device with no frame, but it helps well. The picture
results were better than expected in dull weather. The lens is o.k and
has no
vignetting and little distorsion. The flash works well.
Multiple exposure is easy. The manual ejection is easy and reliable, I
can't see any flaws. I had a faulty back flap, so there were light
leaks in the sun. The counter on my first camera didn't work. I will test the replacement camera early April.
If the other cameras have no leaks, this is a well
conceived fun camera which could certainly find its public. As they
provide customer service now, you may need some patience. But obviously
the are willing to sort the problems out.
